Aug 16, 2021; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Matt Harvey (32) looks on after giving up a two-run home run to Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe (left) during the fifth inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The good news for the Orioles came on Monday morning. They announced promotions for a number of minor league prospects. Later, they learned that “Baseball America” ranked their farm system as the second best in the game.
Then they had to play. They began a four-game series against the the Tampa Bay Rays with a 9-2 loss at Tropicana Field. It was the Orioles’ 12th consecutive defeat.
The Orioles (38-79) have lost 12 of 13 this season to the Rays (72-47), who are leading the American League East.
“They’re obviously a good team and put together good at-bats,” Oriole starter Matt Harvey said. “It’s a tough lineup. You’ve got to be strong. You’ve got to keep them off-balance, really execute your pitches. They don’t really swing at too many mistakes, and you have to be on your game.”
In the Orioles’ 12-game losing streak, which is two shy of the season-high 14-game skid from May 18-31, they’ve allowed 113 runs. They’ve given up an average of more than nine runs a game, and their closest loss was by two runs, 6-4 to Detroit on August 12th. Oriole starters have an 8.88 ERA; relievers have a 10.37 ERA.
“It’s obviously tough,” Harvey said. “No one wants to go out there and continuously lose. It’s tough. I’ve been on losing teams, but nothing like this.”
It won’t get easier. Twenty-eight of the Orioles’ final 45 games are against the AL East.
“I think we’re handling it the best we possibly can,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “The energy in our dugout tonight was unbelievable for a team that [has lost] has many games as we have … I think the effort is there. We’re playing hard. We’re not executing. We make bad pitches during bad times and we’re trying too hard at the plate in big moments, and that doesn’t work in this game.
“Our strike zone discipline at the plate is an issue. When guys are overaggressive, it doesn’t lead to big innings. We don’t walk and guys are trying to get the big hit instead of letting the game come to them.”
Harvey (6-12) had a 1-0 lead going into the bottom of the fourth and didn’t allow his first hit until Manuel Margot singled after a walk to Ji-Man Choi. Austin Meadows hit a two-run triple put the Rays ahead, 2-1.
Harvey allowed home runs to Kevin Kiermaier and Brandon Lowe in the fifth and was removed after throwing 4 2/3 innings. He gave up five runs on five hits.
“He just made a couple of bad pitches there in the fifth inning,” Hyde said. “I thought his command was good. I thought he pitched extremely well up until that point. Just left a couple of balls in the middle part of the plate that led to a couple of homers.”
Reliever Paul Fry allowed his first two home runs of the season — an inside-the-park homer by Brett Phillips and Lowe’s second of the game, a two-run homer, his 28th. It gave the Rays an 8-1 lead.
Fry has a 9.26 ERA in 14 games since the All-Star break.
“I’ve got to get Paul on track,” Hyde said. “Paul was having a really good season in the first half. He was pitching in big spots and getting big outs for us. Right now, he’s scuffling. I’m trying to give him a couple of lower-leverage situations.
“Paul’s got a ton of ability. Paul’s proven he can get major league hitters out, just hit a little bit of a speed bump lately.”
Mike Brosseau homered against Fernando Abad in the seventh. It was the second time in three games that Oriole pitchers have given up five home runs.
Josh Fleming (10-6) worked 5 2/3 innings in relief of opener Collin McHugh, who pitched two spotless innings. Fleming gave up two runs on six hits.
The Orioles scored on a third-inning bunt by Cedric Mullins that scored Jorge Mateo, and on Trey Mancini’s eight-inning double that scored Mullins. Mancini was taken out of the game after he had fouled pitches off his calf and foot and was sore, Hyde said.
Harvey, who has thrown 108 innings, the most since he pitched 155 in 2018, said he’s fine physically.
“It’s hard. We realize we have [45] games to play,” Harvey said. “It’s important how we finish. It’s important how we keep playing and keep our heads down and do everything you can to win as many as we can. Individually, you want to play well and you want to do everything you can to help the team. That’s our goal for the rest of the season. There’s a lot of games left, and you have to go out and play your best, and I guess at this point, prove that they belong.”
Notes: John Means (5-4, 3.21 ERA) will face Drew Rasmussen (1-1, 3.98) on Tuesday night. … Triple-A Norfolk infielder Rylan Bannon was named the Triple-A East Player of the Week.
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Harvey was on the 2018 Reds, they lost 95. He was traded but they lost 23 of their fist 30 games while he was there, and that ain't far off of being as bad as this year's O's.
I haven't been tuning in to many games lately, has anyone started wearing paper bags over their heads yet? lol.
Only outside, they wear masks indoors...lol...go O’s...
It’s time to make changes. You can’t keep running out the same guys that aren’t doing anything. And why did we use Fry again? I think he’s overused and possibly even hurt. Hate to tell Hyde but your energy after twelve straight loses doesn’t say much.
It's very easy to get discouraged as a fan of this team. I'm excited for the future of this team.
The Players that are getting promoted this week in the Minor Leagues are the beginning of a vanguard of talented young players that will eventually make their mark on this Club.
The Orioles now have a real shot at the 1/1 Pick in next June's Amateur Draft. They are 1 game behind the Diamondbacks in the Race-to-the Bottom.
Enjoy the games.. and if you are imaginative enough--you are looking at the future of the Orioles in their opponents in the other Dugout--a great team of can-do players that play hard, work together, support each other and have a payroll a third the size of the Red Sox, Yankees and Dodgers....I like what I see.
As Rodney from Ocean City would say: "Come on People!!!"
Being last is awesome BC.
I HATE LOSING...go O’s...
The Rays are fun to watch, and unlike the Orioles, they've been fun to watch for years. They bring up guys from the minors who I've never heard of who are fun to watch. I sure haven't seen the energy the young Rays exhibit out of the Orioles in a long, long time.
I'm personally tired of watching retreads in Orioles uniforms lose which we wait for the owners and management to build one decent cohesive team comprised of our own minor league players...
Yep. If you love Baseball, you have to love this Rays Team.
I think it was fun to watch Ryan McKenna make that great catch on Sunday. And we've had exciting moments in the field and on the mound from Stevie Wilkerson, who.....Oh, sorry, never mind, just saw the next headline.
Love my O’s, watch them most nights. I keep hoping for a win here and there. We need a kick start and I think it’s adley. Bring him up, breath some new life into this team. We have a good nucleus, drink the kool aid, go Orioles
Daley should have been on the team to start the year if for no other reason that he was and is the best catcher on the team. BUT other than a new pitching staff, nothing will kickstart this team.
This culture of losing will live on long past the arrival of better talent.
Hope you’re wrong but I’ve been saying that I was afraid of that for 2 years now.
Sounds like Hyde identifies the teams flaws time & time again but doesn’t have what it takes or know how to help them improve in those areas.
...or....they're a bad baseball team that no one can fix.
He hasn’t been given the tools to “fix” anything yet. It’s possible that he simply cant do any better with the talent he has. Retreads, rule 5’s, lightning-in-a-bottle type scrap heap players blended with prospects won’t get it done.
Look at the guy - he’s a punching bag with hair. Beyond beleaguered.
I was foolish enough to believe that 2019 was the bottom, and thought that by 2021 the team would be more watchable. Most concerning to me is that this 2020-2021 wave of pitchers (Akin, Kremer, A. Wells, Lowther) has produced little (reserve on Zimmermann). I understand that these were not the guys that have caused the system to advance in the ranks, but I expected something and it causes me to restrain expectations for prospects to come. I add to this the declining stadium experience.
I'm curious about what your specific complaints about the stadium experience are. I'm there every night, but not as a fan, so interested to know what your experience is.
Rich,
The bag policy is ridiculous. Can't watch batting practice. No autographs, no player/fan interaction. More opposing fans then us(besides the Yankees and BoSox). No vendors roaming the stadium, these guys always added to the experience if you knew who they were(saw one in 2 games!) All the subjective covid rules, no cash, no outside anything, convience store like stores, few draught beers. Overly expensive food(i know, but the kids hot dog program was great). Just a few, I still enjoyed my time because I love this team! Hope they can address this when we are allowed to get back to our lives. Also winning would help, lol.
David, thanks for weighing in. I know a lot of fans who are bugged about the bag policy and the no outside food. Interestingly, some of the players have begun signing autographs for a few minutes after the game, and one night, I pointed out on Twitter that Trey Mancini was signing in right field seven minutes before game time.
It's funny, but since Covid, I have been using cash less and less, and in 2019, I noticed that Tropicana Field had gone cashless. I think that's the cash in many places, not just the ballpark.
The stadium experience will improve tenfold when they start to win, I would be more concerned with putting a winning team on the field than concessions or the ability to hear on the PA the O’s are playing poorly...go O’s...
We have no shortage of comments from fans about the team, and I enjoy reading those, but there aren't many from those who go to the games, and I enjoy hearing from them, too. Yes, I think that because the team is losing, fans are bugged by negative stadium experiences, and those are easier to solve than the on-field product. We have many readers, like you, who watch from afar, but many who are locals, too, and all opinions are welcomed.
Rich,
I make it a point to go every year, all the way from Vegas. This teams pitching is horrible, but the positive aspect is that you can get seats behind home plate for $60. Now thats a great experience! Would rather see them be better, though.
Thanks, since we do go to games as well...go O’s...
I’m going to sum it up, with just one word. It’s PATHETIC!!!!
Somebody should tell Mr. Harvey that it’s a process.
Mr Harvey, it’s a process
The Orioles are unwatchable...as bad as it gets from a fan standpoint. Four years of "rebuilding" is just so much smoke. The specter of Chris Davis and his heavy monetary burden will haunt this team for years to come. On top of it, MLB's policy of allowing playoff teams to raid the mediocre teams for their talent further widens the disparity of competitiveness. Playing in the AL East the Os will be lucky to win 20 of the 78 games they play. It's like watching a JV team play the Varsity night after night. Unwatchable.
Jerry
What's the MLB policy of allowing playoff teams to raid mediocre teams? I would like to know this advantage.
I do fundamentally believe that the MLB Commissioner has had it in for the Orioles since before the Expos were shoved up our asses.
Thanks.